


Systems Crash

by BunniesofDoom



Category: RWBY
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Coughing, Cuddling & Snuggling, Dreams and Nightmares, Family, Fever, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Nightmares, Ruby Rose (RWBY) Needs a Hug, Ruby Rose (RWBY) has PTSD, Sick Character, Sickfic, Volume 5 (RWBY)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-11
Updated: 2021-03-11
Packaged: 2021-03-17 22:29:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,365
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29973258
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BunniesofDoom/pseuds/BunniesofDoom
Summary: Yang finally arrives in Haven, but Ruby isn't feeling too great.
Relationships: Qrow Branwen & Ruby Rose, Ruby Rose & Yang Xiao Long
Comments: 1
Kudos: 46





	Systems Crash

**Author's Note:**

> Just writing some sappy sickfic nonsense after the last episode destroyed my heart. I found this month and a half old draft and figured I'd finish it. This is set in volume 5. Enjoy!

It doesn't seem fair that Ruby gets sick after they've been in Haven for a few weeks. After months on the road, she'd figured that finally arriving at their destination would give her a chance to catch her breath and recover. Instead, her body had taken it as a cue to crash after all the stress she's been through. Just her luck.

She'd started off with just a bad cold that she forced herself to push through, determined not to miss out on training for such a minor illness. But when she's still coughing and feverish after a week, both Qrow and Ozpin had decided to step in and force her to rest. (It probably didn't help that she'd almost passed out in the middle of a sparring match.) Her uncle had all but marched her up to her bed and told her to stay put if she knows what's good for her.

So, that's how she finds herself confined to her room, lonely and miserable and trying not to cough up a lung. The doctor that had come to see her had warned the others to stay away from her for the most part, in case she's contagious, so Ruby only really sees her friends when they come by to check on her or bring her water.

To make things harder, the nightmares she's been having since the Fall of Beacon are worse now that she's sick, more vivid and difficult to wake up from. So instead of getting a few good nights rest and kicking this illness to the curb, she sleeps restlessly and fitfully, often waking up more tired than when she fell asleep. Fevers suck.

In short, she feels like crap.

When she jolts awake from another nightmare of Pyrrha dying right in front of her, her breath catches harshly in her throat as she coughs and coughs, trying and failing to catch her breath and ease the tickle in the back of her throat. When the fit finally ends, she blinks away her tears to see her uncle standing over her, looking worried.

"I was going to ask if you're feeling any better, but I think we both know the answer to that," Qrow says, handing her a glass of water. She sips from it gratefully as he presses a cool hand against her forehead, leaning into the comforting touch. Her throat is so sore it feels like she's swallowed broken glass. "You're really burning up, kiddo."

She nods slightly in acknowledgement, letting her eyes drift shut again. Speaking feels like too much effort right now.

"Hey." She feels her uncle tapping her cheek slightly, and she cracks her eyes open to glare at him. "Don't fall asleep just yet." He runs a hand through his already messy hair, looking tired. "I really hate to leave when you're this sick, but I've got to go out and try to recruit some hunters. You going to be okay while I'm gone?"

She pats his hand. "I'll be okay," she tries to assure him, but her voice cracks in the middle of the sentence, and she sounds much too hoarse to reassure anyone.

Qrow winces, but he turns to go anyway. "Alright," he says reluctantly. "Well, your friends will be here while I'm gone. You can message them if you need anything, okay?" He places her scroll on the bedside table within easy reach of her.

"Okay," Ruby croaks, nodding. Her eyelids feel heavy again, and she lets herself slump back against her mountain of pillows.

"Get some rest, kiddo," her uncle says fondly, pulling the blankets up to her chin and brushing her hair away from her forehead.

Ruby drifts off, hoping that she'll feel better after a nap. Maybe she can—finally—sleep this thing off.

When she wakes up again, she feels disoriented. The sun is still shining through the blinds, but it's muted somewhat, less blindingly bright. The sun must be setting. Ruby wonders how long she's been asleep.

From downstairs, she can hear the front door open and close, followed by muffled voices. She can hear her uncle talking, followed by a couple other voices that she can't quite make out. Qrow must be back, with the other hunters that were willing to join him. Ruby feels a pang at not being able to go down and meet them, although hopefully she'll get to hang out with them eventually if they stick around.

But, even if she can't meet them, maybe she can still get a look at the people they're going to be working with. So long as she's quiet about it, there's no reason that she can't get a glimpse of their new allies before anyone notices her. Yeah.

Without thinking about it for more than a few moments, Ruby pushes the covers off her and swings her feet over the side of the bed. She immediately feels dizzy upon standing, grabbing onto the bedside table to steady herself as all the blood rushes to her head. But she refuses to let a little lightheadedness stop her, and as soon as she's blinked the last of the spots from her vision, she starts to make her way across the room to the door.

It's slow going, as Ruby is a bit wobbly on her feet and keeps grabbing onto things like the bed and the dresser and the walls for stability, but eventually she makes her way to the door. She tugs it open carefully, determined to be as quiet as possible as she steps out onto the landing and peers over the railing, eager to check out the hunters Qrow found.

Whatever she was expecting to see gathered in the living room, it wasn't her sister and Weiss, seated on the couch next to Qrow and talking in low voices. Ruby drinks in the sight; it feels like it's been years since she's seen the rest of her team. She hadn't really processed just how much she'd missed them until now.

As if on cue, Yang glances up at the landing where Ruby is standing, letting out a small gasp of surprise. Ruby gasps as well—which turns out to be a mistake. The quick inhale irritates her throat and makes her breath catch in her lungs, sending her into a fit of coughing. Ruby sinks to the floor, gasping for air and trying to steady her breathing.

She startles when she feels a hand at the small of her back, rubbing in comforting circles as she tries to catch her breath. When she manages to pry her eyes open again, she blinks up blearily at her sister's worried face.

Yang is here. She's really here.

"Breathe, sis," Yang mutters quietly but forcefully. Ruby tries to follow her instructions. "C'mon, you can do it."

When Ruby finally has enough air to speak, she immediately feels guilty. She hurt her sister, abandoned her when she needed her most, and yet the first thing she does when they meet again is try to help Ruby. It doesn't seem fair.

"Yang, 'm sorry," she mumbles, wincing as the words catch in her throat.

But her sister shakes her head. "Don't worry about it, Ruby. Now, come on. You should be in bed." Yang hauls her to her feet, and practically carries her back to her room before depositing her back in her bed.

Despite her sister's assurances, Ruby still feels the guilt gnawing at her as her sister gets settled in and prepares for bed. Her sister should be catching up with their friends, not hanging around with her and potentially catching her germs.

"Y' should go," she says quietly, clearing her throat. "I don't want you to get sick too."

Yang waves her off. "You're not getting rid of me that easily, sis. I'm not just going to leave you alone when you're this miserable." She crosses the room and pulls Ruby in for one of her infamous bear hugs. "And quit apologizing already, okay? We're good." She kisses the top of Ruby's head. "I love you."

That night, curled up next to her sister, Ruby sleeps without nightmares for the first time since Beacon fell.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Please comment and leave kudos if you liked it.
> 
> Just a reminder that I do take requests for fics, so if there's an idea that you'd like to see me write, feel free to message me and if I like it, I might end up writing something for it. Also, if you like one of my ideas and want to write your own fic for it, feel free! I'm not possessive with my ideas, and most of my writing is self-indulgent anyway, so all that I ask is that you let me know so I can read it.


End file.
